Maryland Hospitals for a Healthy Environment is pleased to announce the winners of the MD H2E 2010 Trailblazer Awards. MD H2E annually gives its Trailblazer Awards to Maryland hospitals that have shown leadership in advancing sustainability in a particular area or areas of their operations. The winners are all strong models for other hospitals, blazing the trail of sustainable healthcare by reducing their environmental footprint and raising the bar on achieving improved results.
The 2010 Trailblazer Award winners are:
- Anne Arundel Medical Center
- Franklin Square Hospital
- LifeBridge Health
- University of Maryland Medical Center
Anne Arundel Medical Center: AAMC strives to embody a sustainable healthcare agenda. AAMC is designing and building an eight-story “green” tower that exemplifies the principles of “healthcare without harm” and emphasizes the well being of its patients, staff, community and surrounding eco-system. The green building plans will be the first acute care facility in Maryland to achieve the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Engineering and Environmental Design ( LEED) – Silver certification, which will significantly reduce energy and water usage, as well as the amount and toxicity of products and materials used in the building. During the course of the demolition, an impressive 92.6% of materials were recycled.
Franklin Square Hospital Center: View Franklin Square’s Trailblazer Educational Event Presentation here. Franklin Square has made a variety of impressive strides in embedding sustainability both in the design and operation of its hospital and reports three separate practices in its Trailblazing activities. First, Franklin Square Hospital Center is the first Maryland hospital to develop and implement an Environmental Management System (EMS) as a method for reducing environmental impacts. Second, as part of MedStar Health, Franklin Square Hospital Center began a hazardous pharmaceutical waste management program in 2007 that as of this year is fully operational system-wide. Finally, while designing and building the new Patient Care Tower and Emergency Department, Franklin Square Hospital Center has implemented a multitude of LEED-compliant features.
LifeBridge Health: View LifeBridge Health’s Trailblazer Educational Event Presentation here. Lifebridge Health is a leader in environmental sustainability in Maryland and accordingly has dealt creatively with incorporating sustainability into everyday operations. First, in an effort to reduce energy costs, LifeBridge acquired grant funding from Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE) to replace fluorescent lights with LED lamps. Since implementing the program, the staff at LifeBridge health has acted as mentors, providing assistance to several Maryland hospitals in an effort to duplicate its energy successes. Second, LifeBridge is now the only health system in the region composting at all of its facilities. In addition to composting food waste, LifeBridge Health is closing the loop on recycling by using the “final compost product” for landscaping needs at system facilities. Finally, LifeBridge Health has a system-wide regulated medical waste separation and reduction program that has reduced red bag waste by well over half since 2002, including a fluid waste management system at Sinai Hospital for operating rooms. http://lifebridgeblogs.blogspot.com/2010/11/lifebridge-health-honored-as.html
University of Maryland Medical Center: View UMMC’s Trailblazer Educational Event presentation here.
In keeping with its mission to provide healthcare with minimal impact to human health and the environment, UMMC developed a new hazardous pharmaceutical waste management program in January 2010. Titled, “The Safe Handling and Disposal of Hazardous Medications”, the policy addresses both worker and environmental safety. Since January, UMMC has collected 3510 pounds of hazardous pharmaceutical waste for proper disposal. The policies, program and educational materials are easily transferable to other hospitals across the state of Maryland.
Congratulations to all the winners; we look forward to seeing your continued progress in reducing your environmental impact and in furthering sustainable healthcare.
To learn more about the successes of each of the Trailblazers noted here, MD H2E will be co- hosting the second year of the Trailblazer Educational Series in which each hospital noted above will provide an educational experience for others to learn and ask questions about the programs indicated. For any questions, please contact Molly Englund at 410-706-6832 or englund@son.umaryland.edu.